JP7795616B2 - Motor controller cooling device, motor controller and vehicle - Google Patents

Description

This application claims priority to a Chinese patent application bearing application number 202123405296.X and entitled "Motor controller cooling device, motor controller and vehicle," filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China on December 31, 2021, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

This application relates to the technical field of motor controller assemblies, and in particular to motor controller cooling devices, motor controllers, and vehicles.

As other high-voltage control modules are integrated into motor controllers, and the heat flow density of the motor controller's IGBT devices becomes increasingly larger, the requirements for the motor controller's heat dissipation performance become increasingly higher. Without good heat dissipation measures, the motor controller's temperature may exceed the device's junction temperature, which could lead to degradation of the device's performance or even damage.

In related technologies, multiple heat dissipation paths are typically required to meet the heat dissipation requirements of highly integrated motor controller systems, resulting in a large number of internal pipes and joints in the system, which creates a risk of water leakage and is detrimental to the development of smaller, more integrated, and more dense systems.

This application seeks to solve at least one of the technical problems in the prior art. Therefore, one objective of this application is to provide a motor controller cooling device that solves the problems of uneven heat dissipation and complex internal piping in the motor controller.

A motor controller cooling device according to the present application includes a motor controller housing and a flow path cover attached to the motor controller housing, the motor controller housing including a flow path inlet, a housing internal flow path inlet, a housing internal outlet, and a flow path outlet;
the flow path cover includes a flow path cover inlet, a power module inlet, an attachment groove, a power module outlet, and a flow path cover outlet;
the mounting groove is used to mount a power module of the motor controller, and when the power module is mounted in the mounting groove, the heat dissipation surface of the power module is mounted in close contact with the mounting groove of the flow path cover, thereby forming a cooling accommodation chamber;
The flow path inlet is connected to the flow path inlet inside the housing, the flow path inlet inside the housing is connected to the flow path cover inlet, the flow path cover inlet is connected to the power module inlet, the cooling storage chamber, the power module outlet, and the flow path cover outlet in that order, the flow path cover outlet is connected to the outlet inside the housing, and the outlet inside the housing is connected to the flow path outlet.

Preferably, the motor controller housing further includes a second flow path inlet and a second heat dissipation flow path, the flow path cover outlet communicates with the second flow path inlet, the second flow path inlet communicates with the second heat dissipation flow path, and the second heat dissipation flow path communicates with the housing interior outlet.

Preferably, the channel cover outlet is fitted to the second channel inlet;
The pipe between the outlet of the flow path cover and the second flow path inlet is designed in an arc shape;
The second flow path inlet is connected perpendicularly to the second heat dissipation flow path.

Preferably, the second heat dissipation flow path is arranged in a U-shape,
The second heat dissipation flow path is a flat pipe line, and the second flow path inlet is fitted into the second heat dissipation flow path.

Preferably, the position of the flow path inlet is higher than the position of the flow path inlet inside the housing.

Preferably, a guide surface is provided at the inlet of the flow path inside the housing.

Preferably, a seal ring is installed between the motor controller's power module and the flow path cover.

Preferably, the flow path cover includes a plurality of mounting grooves for mounting the power modules, each of which communicates with a corresponding power module inlet and power module outlet, and two adjacent mounting grooves communicate with each other via the corresponding power module inlet and power module outlet.

Preferably, the flow path cover includes a plurality of mounting grooves for mounting the power modules, each mounting groove communicating with a corresponding power module inlet and power module outlet;
The flow path cover further includes a first branch flow path and a second branch flow path, the first branch flow path is connected to the flow path cover inlet, the second branch flow path is connected to the flow path cover outlet, the power module inlet of each mounting groove is connected to the first branch flow path, and the power module outlet of each mounting groove is connected to the second branch flow path.

A second aspect of the present application discloses a motor controller, which includes the above-described cooling device.

A third aspect of the present application discloses a vehicle, which includes the motor controller cooling device described above.

Additional aspects and advantages of the present application will be set forth in part in the description that follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the present application.

The above and/or additional aspects and advantages of the present application will become apparent and readily understood from the following detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the following drawings.

1 is an exploded view of an assembly structure of a motor controller cooling device according to an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the rear configuration of a motor controller housing according to an embodiment of the present application. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the internal structure of a motor controller cooling device according to an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 2 is a front view of a flow path cover according to an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 2 is a rear view of a flow path cover of the cooling device according to the embodiment of the present application. 3 is a schematic diagram of a flow path of a flow path cover according to an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a series connection of flow paths of a plurality of power modules in a flow path cover according to an embodiment of the present application; FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of parallel connection of flow paths of a plurality of power modules in a flow path cover according to an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of parallel connection of flow paths of a plurality of power modules in a flow path cover according to an embodiment of the present application.

The following describes in detail the embodiments of the present application. Examples of the embodiments are shown in the drawings, and the same or similar reference numerals throughout indicate the same or similar parts or parts having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below with reference to the drawings are illustrative and are intended only to help interpret the present application, and should not be construed as limiting the present application.

A motor controller cooling device according to an embodiment of the present application will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 9. The motor controller may be an integrated motor controller, including a motor controller control module and a power module, and integrating electrical components such as an integrated power supply module and an OBC charging module.

As shown in Figures 1 to 6, the motor controller cooling device includes a motor controller housing 1 and a flow path cover 2 attached to the motor controller housing. The motor controller housing 1 is the main body structure for heat dissipation and mounting of each electrical component of the motor controller, and the flow path cover 2 is fixed and sealed to the motor controller housing 1 by friction welding. When the motor controller housing 1 and the flow path cover 2 are welded by friction welding, the fixing strength and airtightness between the flow path cover 2 and the motor controller housing 1 can be ensured.

The motor controller housing 1 includes a flow path inlet 11, an internal housing flow path inlet 12, an internal housing outlet 13, and a flow path outlet 14. The flow path inlet 11 opens to the outer surface of the motor controller housing 1 and is connected to an external coolant supply pipe for supplying coolant. The internal housing flow path inlet 12 opens to the inner surface of the motor controller housing 1 and communicates with the flow path inlet 11. The flow path outlet 14 opens to the outer surface of the motor controller housing 1 and is connected to an external coolant discharge pipe for discharging coolant. The internal housing outlet 13 opens to the inner surface of the motor controller housing 1. The flow path outlet 14 opens to the outer surface of the motor controller housing 1, and the internal housing outlet 13 opens to the inner surface of the motor controller housing 1 and communicates with the flow path outlet 14.

The flow path cover 2 includes a flow path cover inlet 21, a power module inlet 22, a mounting groove 23, a power module outlet 24, and a flow path cover outlet 25. The flow path cover inlet 21 communicates with the power module inlet 22, the power module inlet 22 and the power module outlet 24 each communicate with the mounting groove 23, and the flow path cover outlet 25 communicates with the power module outlet 24. When the flow path cover 2 is attached to the motor controller housing 1, the flow path cover inlet 21 is fitted and joined to the housing internal flow path inlet 12, and the flow path cover outlet 25 is fitted and joined to the housing internal outlet 13.

The mounting groove 23 is used to mount the power module 3 of the motor controller. When the power module 3 is mounted in the mounting groove 23, the heat dissipation surface of the power module 3 covers the mounting groove 23 of the flow path cover 2, the heat dissipation pins of the heat dissipation surface of the power module 3 are placed within the mounting groove 23, and the heat dissipation surface of the power module 3 is mounted in close contact with the mounting groove 23 of the flow path cover 2, forming a cooling storage chamber. The power module inlet 22 and power module outlet 24 of the flow path cover 2 form water passage holes for water inlet and outlet on both sides of the mounting groove 23.

When the power module 3 is attached to the mounting groove 23, the flow path inlet 11 communicates with the housing internal flow path inlet 12, which in turn communicates with the flow path cover inlet 21, which in turn communicates with the power module inlet 22, the cooling chamber, the power module outlet 24, and the flow path cover outlet 25, which in turn communicates with the housing internal outlet 13 and then with the flow path outlet 14. The coolant enters the housing through the flow path inlet 11, flows from the housing internal flow path inlet 12 into the flow path cover inlet 21, then flows from the power module inlet 22 into the cooling chamber to dissipate heat from the power module 3, then flows out through the power module outlet 24 and the flow path cover outlet 25, and then flows out of the motor controller housing 1 through the housing internal outlet 13 and the flow path outlet 14.

In the cooling device according to the embodiment of the present application, both the flow path cover 2 and the motor controller housing 1 have flow paths. After the two are tightly fitted together, a complete cooling flow path piping is formed. The internal piping is simple, and the flow path cover 2 can be replaced according to different power modules 3, resulting in greater applicability and an improved level of systemization and integration of the motor controller.

In one embodiment, the motor controller housing 1 further includes a second flow inlet 26 and a second heat dissipation flow path 27. The flow path cover outlet 25 communicates with the second flow inlet 26, which in turn communicates with the second heat dissipation flow path 27, which in turn communicates with the housing interior outlet 13. Other components, such as an integrated power supply and an OCB charging module, are arranged in close contact with the second heat dissipation flow path 27 within the motor controller housing. The coolant enters the housing through the flow inlet 11, flows from the housing interior flow inlet 12 to the flow path cover inlet 21, and then flows into the cooling chamber through the power module inlet 22 to dissipate heat from the power module 3. It then flows through the power module outlet 24 and the flow path cover outlet 25 to the second flow inlet 26, enters the second heat dissipation flow path 27 to dissipate heat from other components, and then exits the motor controller housing through the housing interior outlet 13 and the flow path outlet 14.

In the above process, the cooling device not only meets the heat dissipation needs of the motor controller's power module 3, but also dissipates heat from other components within the motor controller, such as the integrated power supply and OBC charging module, thereby reducing the module temperature and meeting the heat dissipation needs of the highly integrated motor controller, thereby improving the reliability of the motor controller.

In one specific embodiment, the flow path cover outlet 25 fits into the second flow path inlet 26. When the flow path cover 2 is tightly attached to the motor controller housing, the flow path cover outlet 25 is tightly joined to the second flow path inlet 26, ensuring a tight seal of the flow path and preventing dangerous situations such as short circuits in high-voltage electrical equipment due to coolant leakage within the flow path. It also ensures that the joining cross-sectional areas of the two flow paths, the flow path cover outlet 25 and the second flow path inlet 26, match, ensuring minimal flow resistance for the coolant flowing through the flow path.

The conduit between the channel cover outlet 25 and the second channel inlet 26 is designed in an arc shape, which buffers the channel and reduces hydraulic resistance. The second channel inlet 26 is connected perpendicular to the second heat dissipation channel 27, allowing the coolant to enter the second heat dissipation channel 27 perpendicularly from the second channel inlet 26. This prevents the coolant from entering the channel in a direction parallel to the second heat dissipation channel 27. This also prevents the coolant from entering the lower region of the second heat dissipation channel 27, which would result in uneven heat dissipation in the second heat dissipation channel 27. By utilizing this structure, the coolant enters the second heat dissipation channel 27 in a direction perpendicular to the second heat dissipation channel 27, which makes the coolant in the second heat dissipation channel 27 more uniform, reduces flow resistance, and improves heat dissipation efficiency.

By arranging the second heat dissipation path 27 in a U-shape, the placement range of the second heat dissipation path 27 within the motor controller housing is wider, and the heat dissipation range is increased. Furthermore, the second heat dissipation path 27 is a flattened piping, the outside of the second heat dissipation path 27 is the heat dissipation path wall, and other electronic components are attached to the outside of the heat dissipation path wall, so that heat is conducted to the heat dissipation path wall and dissipated by the second heat dissipation path 27, and the flattened second heat dissipation path 27 can increase the heat dissipation contact area between the component to be dissipated and the path.

By fitting the second flow path inlet 26 into the second heat dissipation flow path 27, it is possible to ensure that the joint cross-sectional areas of the second flow path inlet 26 and the second flow path inlet 26 are the same, thereby minimizing the flow resistance of the coolant flowing through the second heat dissipation flow path 27 from the second flow path inlet 26.

In one specific embodiment, the position of the flow channel inlet 11 is higher than the position of the internal housing flow channel inlet 12, so that the coolant supplied from the flow channel inlet 11 to the internal housing flow channel inlet 12 forms a potential difference and has a certain amount of potential energy. Furthermore, a guide surface is provided at the internal housing flow channel inlet 12 to guide the coolant that has entered the internal housing flow channel inlet 12 and restrict the flow direction to the direction of the flow channel cover inlet 21, while also achieving buffering of the flow channel and reducing flow resistance.

Preferably, a seal ring is attached between the motor controller's power module 3 and the flow path cover 2 to ensure a tight fit between the heat dissipation surface of the power module 3 and the mounting groove 23 of the flow path cover 2, ensuring that the cooling chamber is sealed and leak-free, thereby avoiding dangerous situations such as short-circuiting high-voltage electrical equipment due to coolant leakage from the cooling chamber.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, the motor controller may have multiple power modules 3. In this case, to better accommodate the heat dissipation of the multiple power modules 3, the flow path cover 2 includes multiple mounting grooves 23 for mounting the power modules 3. Each mounting groove 23 communicates with a corresponding power module inlet 22 and power module outlet 24, and two adjacent mounting grooves 23 communicate with each other via the corresponding power module inlet 22 and power module outlet 24. When multiple power modules 3 are arranged in parallel, two adjacent mounting grooves 23 communicate with each other via the corresponding power module inlet 22 and power module outlet 24, so that the cooling storage chambers of the multiple power modules 3 arranged in parallel are connected to each other in series, reducing the flow path piping.

The power module inlet 22 and power module outlet 24 may be connected to both the left and right sides of the mounting groove 23, so that the power module inlet 22, mounting groove 23, and power module outlet 24 are basically aligned in a straight line. When two adjacent mounting grooves 23 are connected via the corresponding power module inlet 22 and power module outlet 24, the inlets and outlets of multiple cooling storage chambers connected in series are also aligned in a straight line, thereby reducing flow resistance, increasing flow velocity, and making the flow of the coolant smoother.

In one embodiment, as shown in Figures 8 and 9, the motor controller may have multiple power modules 3. In this case, to better accommodate heat dissipation for the multiple power modules 3, the flow path cover 2 includes multiple mounting grooves 23 for mounting the power modules 3, each mounting groove 23 communicating with a corresponding power module inlet 22 and power module outlet 24. The flow path cover 2 further includes a first branch flow path 28 and a second branch flow path 29, with the first branch flow path 28 connected to the flow path cover inlet 21 and the second branch flow path 29 connected to the flow path cover outlet 25. The power module inlet 22 of each mounting groove 23 is connected to the first branch flow path 28, and the power module outlet 24 of each mounting groove 23 is connected to the second branch flow path 29.

The power module inlet 22 and power module outlet 24 may be connected to both the front and rear sides of the mounting groove 23, respectively. When multiple power modules 3 are arranged in parallel, the power module inlet 22 of each mounting groove 23 is connected to the first branch flow path 28, and the power module outlet 24 of each mounting groove 23 is connected to the second branch flow path 29, so that the cooling chambers of the multiple power modules 3 arranged in parallel are connected to each other in parallel, and the cooling chambers of each power module 3 are each located in an independent branch flow path, thereby reducing the mutual influence between the power modules and improving heat dissipation efficiency.

The present application further discloses a motor controller including the above-described motor controller cooling device.

The present application further discloses a vehicle including the above-described motor controller cooling device.

By utilizing the motor controller cooling device, the vehicle according to the present application solves the problems of uneven heat dissipation and complex internal piping of the motor controller. Furthermore, by providing a second heat dissipation flow path within the motor controller housing, the cooling device not only meets the heat dissipation needs of the motor controller's power module, but also dissipates heat from other components within the motor controller, such as the integrated power supply and OBC charging module, thereby lowering the module temperature and meeting the heat dissipation needs of the highly integrated motor controller.

In this specification, when a description refers to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "example," "specific example," or "several examples," it means that the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described in combination with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, illustrative descriptions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined as appropriate in any one or more embodiments or examples.

In describing the present invention, the orientations or positional relationships indicated by terms such as "center," "longitudinal," "lateral," "length," "width," "thickness," "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "inner," "outer," "clockwise," "counterclockwise," "axial," "radial," and "circumferential" are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the drawings and are intended merely to facilitate and simplify the description of the present invention. They do not indicate or suggest that the devices or parts shown must have a specific orientation, be configured, or operate in a specific orientation, and should not be understood as limiting the present invention.

Furthermore, terms such as "first" and "second" used in the embodiments of the present invention are for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood to indicate or suggest relative importance or to implicitly indicate the number of technical features shown in the embodiments. Thus, features defined in the embodiments of the present invention by terms such as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly indicate that the embodiment includes at least one of the feature. In describing the present invention, the term "plurality" means at least two, e.g., two, three, four, etc., unless explicitly limited in the embodiments.

In the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified or limited in the examples, terms such as "attached," "coupled," "connected," and "fixed" that appear in the examples should be understood in a broad sense. For example, a connection may be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection. As can be understood, it may be a mechanical connection, an electrical connection, etc., and of course, it may be a direct connection, an indirect connection via an intermediate medium, an internal communication between two parts, or an interactive relationship between two parts. Those skilled in the art will be able to understand the specific meaning of the above terms in the present invention according to the specific implementation circumstances.

In the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified or limited, a first feature being "above" or "below" a second feature may include direct contact between the first and second features, or indirect contact between the first and second features via an intermediate medium. Furthermore, a first feature being "above," "above," or "on the upper surface" of a second feature may include the first feature being directly above or diagonally above the second feature, or may simply mean that the horizontal height of the first feature is higher than that of the second feature. A first feature being "below," "below," or "on the lower surface" of a second feature may include the first feature being directly below or diagonally below the second feature, or may simply mean that the horizontal height of the first feature is lower than that of the second feature.

While embodiments of the present application have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes, modifications, substitutions, and variations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and purpose of the present application, and that the scope of the present application is limited only by the claims and their equivalents.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Motor controller housing 2 Flow path cover 3 Power module 11 Flow path inlet 12 Flow path inlet inside housing 13 Flow path outlet inside housing 14 Flow path outlet 15 Seal strip 21 Flow path cover inlet 22 Power module inlet 23 Mounting groove 24 Power module outlet 25 Flow path cover outlet 26 Second flow path inlet 27 Second heat dissipation flow path 28 First branch flow path 29 Second branch flow path

Claims (11)

a motor controller housing; and a flow path cover attached to the motor controller housing, the motor controller housing including a flow path inlet, a housing internal flow path inlet, a housing internal outlet, and a flow path outlet;
the motor controller housing is a main body structure for mounting each electrical component of the motor controller;
the flow path cover includes a flow path cover inlet, a power module inlet, an attachment groove, a power module outlet, and a flow path cover outlet;
the mounting groove is configured to mount a power module of a motor controller, and when the power module is mounted in the mounting groove, a heat dissipation surface of the power module is mounted in close contact with the mounting groove of the flow path cover, thereby forming a cooling accommodation chamber;
the flow path inlet is connected to the housing internal flow path inlet, the housing internal flow path inlet is connected to the flow path cover inlet, the flow path cover inlet is connected to the power module inlet, the cooling storage chamber, the power module outlet, and the flow path cover outlet, the flow path cover outlet is connected to the housing internal outlet, and the housing internal outlet is connected to the flow path outlet. The motor controller cooling device of claim 1, wherein the motor controller housing further includes a second flow path inlet and a second heat dissipation path, the flow path cover outlet communicates with the second flow path inlet, the second flow path inlet communicates with the second heat dissipation path, and the second heat dissipation path communicates with the housing interior outlet. the flow path cover outlet is fitted to the second flow path inlet;
The conduit between the flow path cover outlet and the second flow path inlet is configured in an arc shape,
The motor controller cooling device of claim 2 , wherein the second flow path inlet includes a cross section that is connected perpendicularly to the second heat dissipation flow path. the second heat dissipation flow path is U-shaped,
The motor controller cooling device according to claim 2 , wherein the second flow path inlet is fitted into the second heat dissipation flow path. The motor controller cooling device of claim 1, wherein the position of the flow path inlet is higher than the position of the flow path inlet inside the housing. The motor controller cooling device of claim 1, characterized in that a guide surface is provided at the inlet of the flow path inside the housing. The motor controller cooling device of claim 1, characterized in that a seal ring is attached between the power module and the flow path cover. The motor controller cooling device of claim 1, characterized in that the flow path cover includes a plurality of mounting grooves for mounting power modules, each of which communicates with the corresponding power module inlet and power module outlet, and two adjacent mounting grooves communicate with each other via the corresponding power module inlet and power module outlet. the flow path cover includes a plurality of mounting grooves for mounting power modules, each of the mounting grooves communicating with a corresponding one of the power module inlets and the corresponding one of the power module outlets;
2. The motor controller cooling device of claim 1, wherein the flow path cover further includes a first branch flow path and a second branch flow path, the first branch flow path is connected to an inlet of the flow path cover, the second branch flow path is connected to an outlet of the flow path cover, a power module inlet of each of the mounting grooves is connected to the first branch flow path, and a power module outlet of each of the mounting grooves is connected to the second branch flow path. A motor controller comprising a power module and the motor controller cooling device described in any one of claims 1 to 9. A vehicle comprising the motor controller cooling device described in any one of claims 1 to 9.